Cardinals Major League Notebook: 04/28/11

The Cardinals survived a very shaky finish to defeat Houston 6-5 on Wednesday night.

INSIDE PITCH

The Cardinals' 6-5 win over
Houston on
Wednesday night never should have been that close

The St. Louis bullpen, both
old and young, staggered down the stretch The late-inning problems threatened
to overcome another brilliant outing by right-hander Kyle Lohse

After spinning a two-hit
shutout against Washington in his last start,
Lohse blanked Houston on four hits for seven innings and left
with a 6-0 lead

Not only has Lohse given
up just 22 hits in 38 1/3 innings, but he has walked just five while striking
out 24 Of the seven runs he has allowed, four of them came in one inning in his
first start of the season

On Wednesday, Lohse (4-1)
showed an excellent changeup, and though not necessarily considered a sinkerball
pitcher, he kept the ball down enough to record 12 of his 21 outs on
groundballs

Lohse, who said he was
fighting a cold, said he didn't have his usual command, citing his walking
opposing pitcher J.A. Happ

"That's not what you want
to do, even if is hitting 500 ( 571)," Lohse said "I got away with
it

"It felt I was more
behind in the count than I have been "

However, Lohse did throw
19 first-pitch strikes to the 25 hitters he faced

The Cardinals' offense
was resourceful enough to overcome hitting into five double plays Especially
significant were four two-out singles, by Nick Punto, Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday and Lance Berkman, each good for a run in the seventh, which seemed to
put the game away

"Any time you've got a
chance to keep piling on, you've got to do it," Berkman said "We scored just
enough to win "

Holliday, who was 3-for-4
on the season when he went out with an appendectomy, seems to be hitting about
as much since he came back Holliday, also battling a cold, was 3-for-4 with a
home run and is 24-for-59 ( 407) since returning

With right-hander
Mitchell Boggs, the closer of the moment, getting a night off because he had
endured a long inning in blowing a save Tuesday, manager Tony La Russa went
through four pitchers in the final two innings after determining he should
replace Lohse La Russa said Lohse was getting the ball up in the seventh
inning

Rookie right-hander
Eduardo Sanchez got his first major league save Though he allowed his first two
runs in seven appearances, Sanchez got the final out by fanning Hunter Pence on
a much better breaking ball than he had thrown earlier in the
inning

"He made a great pitch to
get Pence out," said La Russa, who admitted he and pitching coach Dave Duncan
were still looking to "get the bullpen right" after veteran right-hander Ryan Franklin was stripped of his closer's job

NOTES,
QUOTES

RHP Ryan Franklin and LHP
Trever Miller continue to struggle Franklin, working in a non-stressful
situation with a six-run lead in the eighth, allowed a double and a single to
the only two hitters he faced, although LF Matt Holliday, who tried to make a
sliding grab, said he should have caught Houston 2B Joe Inglett's liner Miller
hasn't retired any of the four hitters he has faced in his last four
appearances, He walked left-handed-hitting CF Michael Bourn on a full-count
pitch after having Bourn down 1-2

"He's just not sharp,"
said manager Tony La Russa, who said he intends to use Miller again Thursday if
the situation arose

2B Nick Punto, who had no
spring training because of an operation to repair a sports hernia, played
stellar defense and contributed two hits "I'm getting more comfortable every
night," Punto said

SS Ryan Theriot sat out
for a second straight night with a tug in his right rib-cage area Theriot said
he would be able to play Thursday, but Tyler Greene has filled in well, hitting
his first home run and adding a single Wednesday

RF Lance Berkman,
returning to Houston, where he starred for a
decade, had his second consecutive two-hit night at MinuteMaidPark, and he made an outstanding running
catch near the right field foul line But, playing in for spray-hitting SS Angel Sanchez, Berkman allowed a double to be hit over his head in the ninth inning,
keeping the game alive Berkman has had six straight multi-hit games and has 11
for the season, tops in the league

CF Jon Jay, giving Colby Rasmus his first game off of the season, had two hits and a walk Jay had been
just one for his last 13 entering the game

BY THE NUMBERS: 6 - Hits by former Cardinals
first-round draft pick Brett Wallace, the Houston first baseman, in the first
two games of the series

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I thought he'd get three outs
It didn't work out that way "

- Manager Tony La Russa,
on struggling RHP Ryan Franklin, whom La Russa lifted after Franklin gave up
hits to the first two men he faced in the eighth while working with a six-run
lead

ROSTER
REPORT

MEDICAL
WATCH:

SS Ryan Theriot (sore rib
cage) was a late scratch April 26, and he didn't play April 27 He is
day-to-day

2B Skip Schumaker
(strained right triceps) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April
16 Manager Tony La Russa said Schumaker might be out longer than 15
days

OF Allen Craig (left
groin strain) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April 17 He hopes
to return after the minimum absence

LHP Bryan Tallet
(fractured right hand) went on 15-day disabled list April 13 He had screws
inserted in his hand, and he hopes to return in early May Tallet, who is
scheduled to have stitches removed from his hand May 1, stayed behind as the
Cardinals went on the road April 26, and was scheduled to throw side sessions
every other day

RHP Bryan Augenstein
(strained right groin) went on the 15-day disabled list April
13

RHP Adam Wainwright
(Tommy John surgery in February 2011) went on the 60-day disabled list March 25
He will miss the entire 2011 season